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First evidence of in vitro cytotoxic effects of marine microlitter on Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus, two Mediterranean commercial fish species
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This study exposed primary cell cultures from Mediterranean commercial fish — European hake and red mullet — to real marine microlitter collected from coastal waters, finding cytotoxic effects in immune and mucosal tissues. Importantly, both fish species had ingested plastics including HDPE and polypropylene, providing evidence that environmental (not just laboratory) microplastic contamination harms marine food fish.
Marine litter is composed mainly of plastics and is recognized as a serious threat to marine ecosystems. Ecotoxicological approaches have started elucidating the potential severity of microplastics (MPs) in controlled laboratory studies with pristine materials but no information exists on marine environmental microlitter as a whole. Here, we characterized the litter in the coastal Northern Tyrrhenian sea and in the stomach of two fish species of socio-economic importance, and exposed primary cell cultures of mucosal and lymphoid organs to marine microlitter for evaluating possible cytotoxic effects. An average of 0.30 ± 0.02 microlitter items m was found in water samples. μFT-IR analysis revealed that plastic particles, namely HDPE, polyamide and polypropylene were present in 100% and 83.3% of Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus analyzed, which overall ingested 14.67 ± 4.10 and 5.50 ± 1.97 items/individual, respectively. Moreover, microlitter was confirmed as a vector of microorganisms. Lastly, the apical end-point of viability was found to be significantly reduced in splenic cells exposed in vitro to two microlitter conditions. Considering the role of the spleen in the mounting of adaptive immune responses, our results warrant more in-depth investigations for clarifying the actual susceptibility of these two species to anthropogenic microlitter.
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First evidence of in vitro cytotoxic effects of marine microlitter on Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus , two Mediterranean commercial fish species
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Researchers collected actual marine litter (not lab-made microplastics) from the Northern Adriatic Sea and tested its toxicity on cells from two commercially caught fish species. Real marine microlitter caused significant cell damage and inflammation, including effects not seen with pristine lab-grade microplastics. This suggests that studies using only clean, standardized plastic particles may underestimate the true toxicity of environmental microplastics.
Microplastics accumulation in gastrointestinal tracts of Mullus barbatus and Merluccius merluccius is associated with increased cytokine production and signaling
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Researchers found microplastics in the gastrointestinal tracts of red mullet and European hake from the Mediterranean and showed that MP accumulation was associated with elevated production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in gut tissue. The immunotoxic response to ingested MPs suggests that plastic contamination may chronically impair immune function in commercially important fish species.
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Researchers examined the gastrointestinal tracts of 229 demersal fish from two Mediterranean species across three geographic sub-areas, finding microplastics in a significant portion of individuals with fibers as the dominant type. The study contributes to growing evidence that microplastic ingestion is widespread in commercially fished Mediterranean species.
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